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Sinch acquires SAP’s Digital Interconnect messaging business for $250M

M&A activity has generally slowed down in the weeks since the novel coronavirus took a grip on the world, but there have been some pockets of activity in the tech industry when the price is right or when the divestment/acquisition just makes sense. The world of messaging brings us the latest development in that theme: SAP, […]




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Harbr emerges from stealth to help build online data marketplaces

Harbr co-founder Anthony Cosgrove has been working with data for over 15 years, so he has an inkling of some of the problems associated with pulling data together in a way that makes it easy for others to consume, whether internally or externally. Like many entrepreneurs before him, he decided to start a company to […]




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To Go After Local Neighborhood News And Marketplaces, Hoodline Raises $1.6M

One of the most sought-after, but never quite dominated, frontiers in online media and marketplaces has been centered on local communities. Hoodline, a San Francisco-based startup, is trying to tackle this with a unique focus on news about neighborhood retail corridors. The startup has built up a network of news on about two-dozen neighborhoods across San Francisco as a sort of Trojan horse into a larger platform of hyperlocal listings and markets.




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Townsquared Raises $5.3M To Expand A Nextdoor-Like Experience For Local Retail, Small Businesses

Even though Rohit Prakash was a dual MD and PhD researching optogenetics at Stanford University, his entrepreneurial itch kept returning him to his family’s small business roots. He and his co-founder Nipul Patel began researching the travails of small business owners, interviewing countless entrepreneurs, trying to figure out what their risks were or what caused […]




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Coronavirus lays a political minefield

Hopefully, its defeat will show the worth of intelligent and honest government




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The danger in the coronavirus recovery will be inertia

A make-do-and-mend approach will not be enough — we need a societal transformation




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Workstream, a platform for deskless work, raises $10 million to serve local businesses

Deskless workers make up 80% of the global workforce, but to Desmond Lim, that job title is his entire world. Lim grew up in Singapore and saw his father wake up every morning, six days a week, at 5 a.m. to start his job as a driver. Lim and his mom, who worked as a […]




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As funding slows in Boston, its early-stage market could shine

Chris Lynch, a founder and former general partner at Boston-based seed-stage fund Accomplice, remembers “VC Mountain in Waltham.” Back then, entrepreneurs on funding quests would visit a building overlooking the Waltham Reservoir near Boston where they pitched to a few investors: Matrix Partners, Charles River Ventures and Highland Capital Partners. “And if they didn’t invest in […]




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EU industrial supply lines need strengthening, commissioner warns

Thierry Breton says coronavirus crisis shows vital supplies are vulnerable to disruption




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British Airways parent slams possible UK quarantine plans

IAG boss Willie Walsh warns people will not fly if government brings in new measures




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Toyota to reopen its UK engine plant next week

Japanese group joins other carmakers in restarting their manufacturing operations in Britain




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Shine adds invoice insurance to its freelancer bank account

French startup Shine is adding a new option today. If you think there’s a chance that a client is not going to pay your next invoice, you can insure that invoice to avoid any bad surprise. Shine is building a challenger bank for freelancers and small companies. It lets you send and receive money in […]




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St. Louis-based Summersalt raises $17.3 million for its direct-to-consumer clothing line

The Midwest may not be known as the fashion capital of the world (or even the U.S.), but its place in the consumer retail firmament is secure through L Brands and its Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works subsidiaries. Now, venture investors are investing $17.3 million to establish another tent-pole clothing brand in the […]




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Warburg to raise stake in Chinese car rental company

US private equity firm plans further share in group shaken by fallout from Luckin Coffee scandal




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Chinese buyer of British Steel to pursue French arm

Jingye to keep close contact with Paris as it completes takeover and saves 3,200 jobs




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Continental auto profit margins fall to zero

German supplier scraps outlook and warns smaller contractors could go out of business




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Hitachi anticipates wave of Chinese infrastructure spending

Japanese conglomerate expects rebound in construction industry as cities end lockdowns




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Chinese carmakers move into Myanmar to battle Japanese rivals

Soueast Motor and GAC take advantage of rules favouring locally made vehicles




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Co-founder of Chinese carmaker Qoros sells half his stake

Idan Ofer’s Kenon offloads shares to majority owner Baoneng in $237m deal




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As funding slows in Boston, its early-stage market could shine

Chris Lynch, a founder and former general partner at Boston-based seed-stage fund Accomplice, remembers “VC Mountain in Waltham.” Back then, entrepreneurs on funding quests would visit a building overlooking the Waltham Reservoir near Boston where they pitched to a few investors: Matrix Partners, Charles River Ventures and Highland Capital Partners. “And if they didn’t invest in […]




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NHS COVID-19: The UK’s coronavirus contacts-tracing app explained

The UK has this week started testing a coronavirus contacts-tracing app which NHSX, a digital arm of the country’s National Health Service, has been planning and developing since early March. The test is taking place in the Isle of Wight, a 380km2 island off the south coast of England, with a population of around 140,000. […]




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Josh Constine leaves TechCrunch for VC fund SignalFire

How do you leave the place that made you? You figure out what it made you for. TechCrunch made me a part of the startup ecosystem I love. Now it’s time to put that love into action to help a new generation of entrepreneurs build their dreams and tell their stories. So it’s “TC to […]




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Human Capital is an engineering talent agency and a VC fund all in one

Michael Ovitz didn’t invent the idea of a talent agency, but one might argue that he perfected it. He founded the CAA in 1975, and grew it into the world’s leading talent agency, serving as chairman for 20 years. Now, Ovitz is investing in a brand new type of talent agency called Human Capital. Human […]




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EIF sets up web page, hosts webinars to examine trade impacts of COVID-19 on LDCs

The Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) has set up a dedicated webpage and will be organizing webinars to examine the trade impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on least developed countries (LDCs).




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DDG Wolff: COVID-19 crisis underlines need for more multilateralism, not less

The COVID-19 pandemic crisis has underlined the need for greater multilateral cooperation, including the need to improve the global trading system, Deputy Director-General Alan Wolff said on 7 May. Speaking at a webinar hosted by the African Institute for Economic Development and Planning, DDG Wolff said trade will play an important role in Africa’s economic recovery from the crisis, particularly through increased intra-African trade.




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Mobile gaming is a $68.5 billion global business, and investors are buying in

By the end of 2019, the global gaming market is estimated to be worth $152 billion, with 45% of that, $68.5 billion, coming directly from mobile games.





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Impossible adds ‘ground pork’ and ‘sausages’ to its lineup of plant-based foods

Impossible Foods made huge waves in the food industry when it came up with a way of isolating and using “heme” molecules from plants to mimic the blood found in animal meat (also comprised of heme), bringing a new depth of flavor to its vegetarian burger. This week at CES, the company is presenting the […]




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Africa Roundup: Nigerian fintech gets $360M, mints unicorn, draws Chinese VC

November 2019 could mark when Nigeria (arguably) became Africa’s unofficial capital for fintech investment and digital finance startups. The month saw $360 million invested in Nigerian-focused payment ventures. That is equivalent to roughly one-third of all the startup VC raised for the entire continent in 2018, according to Partech stats. A notable trend-within-the-trend is that […]




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PayPal, Intuit & Square approved to offer loans to small businesses through coronavirus relief program

Fintech companies have been lobbying for weeks to be able to participate in the U.S. government’s emergency lending program for small businesses. Now those efforts have paid off, as PayPal, Intuit and Square have all been approved to participate in the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program, which provides aid in the form […]




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Daily Crunch: iPhone sales decline in Q1

Apple’s earnings show the impact of COVID-19, NVIDIA’s top scientist shares an open source ventilator design and Amazon anticipates big spending in the coming months. Here’s your Daily Crunch for May 1, 2020. 1. iPhone sales are down, ahead of uncertain times for the industry Apple device sales have taken a hit, but the company’s […]




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Quarantine creates new opportunities for video makers, according to a Butter Works report

While global stay-at-home orders have been a blow to most companies, they’ve also created opportunities for businesses helping to keep people entertained. So if you’re a YouTube creator hoping to capture some additional eyeballs while everyone’s stuck at home, online video agency Butter Works has released an interactive report outlining the most promising topics for […]




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Yelp is making it easier for businesses to highlight their virtual services

As businesses struggle to reinvent themselves in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Yelp is launching new features to help highlight these changes. For one thing, it’s adding a new information category called virtual service offerings, which will allow businesses to showcase the fact that they’re providing things like virtual consultations, classes, tours and performances. […]




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U.S. gasoline price continues to increase (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline rose to $2.58 a gallon on Monday. That's up 7 tenths of a penny from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to increase (long version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline rose to $2.58 a gallon on Monday. That's up 7 tenths of a penny from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price decreases (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.57 a gallon on Monday. That's down 8 tenths of a penny from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price decreases (long version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.57 a gallon on Monday. That's down 8 tenths of a penny from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to decrease (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.54 a gallon on Monday. That's down 3.3 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to decrease (long version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.54 a gallon on Monday. That's down 3.3 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to decrease (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.51 a gallon on Monday. That's down 3.1 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to decrease (long version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.51 a gallon on Monday. That's down 3.1 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to decrease (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.46 a gallon on Monday. That's down 5.1 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to decrease (long version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.46 a gallon on Monday. That's down 5.1 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to decrease (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.42 a gallon on Monday. That's down 3.6 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to decrease (long version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.42 a gallon on Monday. That's down 3.6 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price increases (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline rose to $2.43 a gallon on Monday. That's up 9 tenths of a penny from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price increases (long version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline rose to $2.43 a gallon on Monday. That's up 9 tenths of a penny from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to increases (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline rose to $2.47 a gallon on Monday. That's up 3.8 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price continues to increases (long version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline rose to $2.47 a gallon on Monday. That's up 3.8 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.




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U.S. gasoline price decreases (short version)

The U.S. average retail price for regular gasoline fell to $2.42 a gallon on Monday. That's down 4.3 cents from a week ago, based on the weekly price survey by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.